Drier



(No Model.)

W. J. POSSONS.

DRIER.

No. 320,498. PatentedJune 23, 1885.

WITNESSES A INVENTOR ORNEYS N. Parana mwuxhom w. Washingtqm b. a

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE-3.

NVILLIAM J. PQSSONS, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

DRIER.

SPEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 320,498, dated June 23,1885.

(No model.)

To (LU whom, it may concern..-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM J. POSSONS, of Cleveland, in the county ofOuyahoga and State of Ohio. have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Drying-Ftwnaces; and I do hereby declare the followingto be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and usethe same.

My invention relates to furnaces for drying carbons, the object being toprovide a furnace and attachments that operate automatically inreceiving the carbons, passing them through the furnace, and dischargingthem, and that will do better work and with less labor than the devicesheretofore used for this purpose.

Vith these objects in view my invention consists in certain features ofconstruction and in combination of parts hereinafter described, andpointed out in the claims.

In the manufacture of carbons for electric lights, in the latter part ofthe process, the carbons become saturated with water, and it isnecessary to thoroughly dry" them before they are packed for the market.

I-Ieretofore rude devices for this purpose have been in use, theoperations of which were slow and the results unsatisfactory, requiringa large amount of labor 011 the part of the operator in proportion tothe number of carbons that were dried.

My improved furnace consists of a fire-box provided with grates,ash-pits, doors, &c., arranged crosswise of the structure, so that thefiring is done on one side of the structure. A long horizontal fine, atright angles to the fireboX, conducts the products of combustion to thechimney via a side flue at the rear end. Through this flue and over thefurnace pass endless chains, moving from the rear forward,

and returning through a recess underneath the furnace. At the rear endis an inclined hopper, in which the carbon may be placed in bulk, andfrom which the carbons are fed onto the endless chains by their owngravity. In front is a hopper or trough inclining from the chainsdownward, and into which the carbons are discharged by gravity, and fromwhich the carbons may be removed in a large quantity. The chains aredriven by suitable mechanism,

hereinafter described. The carbons entering the said flue at the rearend, where the heat is least, become gradually heated, and encounter aconstantly-increasing, heat as they move forward until they reach thefront, where the heat is such that all moisture is expelled, and thecarbons issue from the furnace thoroughly dried. The actuating mechanismis so arranged that the speed of the chains may be increased ordiminished at pleasure.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal verticalsection of the furnace and flue and a portion of the chimney inelevation. Fig. 2 is a plan view, with the walls of the furnace, fine,and chimneys in section.

A represents the body of the structure, made preferably of brick.

B represents the furnace, provided with the grates b, and in the usualmanner with furnace and ash-pit doors at b.

O is the flue with the brick casing arched above, as shown.

D is a side flue leading to the chimney E.

G are endless chains moving in the direction of the arrow, and passingover sprocketwheels H and H, and around the guidingwheel I and 1, andback through the reces J in the lower part of the structure.

The driving sprocket'wheel H is secured to the shaft h, the rear end ofwhich is provided with the worm-gear h, engaging the wormK on the shaft70, that is provided with thecone L for regulating the speed of thechains.

M is an inclined trough or hopper, arranged so as to discharge thecarbons upon the chains.

N is a similar inclined trough, arranged to remove the carbons as theyare discharged from the chains.

1? are tightening-pulleys for taking up the slack in the chains.

In operating the device the carbons are placed in the trough M, and rollonto the chains and are passed through a small opening in the rear wall,and in the position shown at S, and are carried along through the saidflue and over the furnace, and pass through a suitable opening in thefront wall and are dis charged into the trough N, having been thoroughlydried in the passage through the fine and over the furnace.

WVhat I claim is- 1. The combination, with a furnace having an elongatedhot-air flue and an endless carrier moving in said flue, of afeeding-hopper located at or near one end of the horizontal flue, and areceiving-hopper located at or near the'opposite end of said flue,substantially as set forth. I

2. A drying furnace having a horizontal flue, the opposite ends of whichare provided with openings, in combination with an endless carrierpassing through said flue and open ings and returning under the furnace,pulleys located outside of the furnace and supporting the carrier, afeeding-hopper located outside of and at one end of the furnace andadapted to feed the articles to the carrier, and a receiving-hopperlocated outside of and at the opposite end of the furnace for receivingthe tion, in the presence of two witnesses, this 16th day of February,1884.

WILLIAM J. POSSONS.

Witnesses:

ALBERT E. LYNCH, CHAS. H. Donnn.

